Christmas & Setting Goals...

 Christmas has come and gone and it was a wonderful one for me. I was blessed to have my husband home with us for a week and he was able to spend a lot of time with the family. He even got to meet our nephew who was born back in October but has since been on the road and not been able to see him.

Christmas came with lots of goodies too for me to eat and I admit I pigged out on them too especially while I was at my MIL's house in South Carolina. Oh My...she made a delicious Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake and let's just say it was amazing. I need to be working out but it seems that I might have caught a little something or it's the steriods leaving my system that has caused havock on my stomach. I'm guessing it's the second one. But for Christmas, Jason and Olivia gave me a Garmin Forerunner 220 GPS Watch and Jason gave me a Raw Threads Cindy Shirt. The day after Christmas I also ordered myself a Sparkle Skirt which I can't wait to receive it in the mail. I should be out today running but it's cold and rainy out and well I just don't feel real hot to do it. I will be making up for it tomorrow and tomorrow is a no excuse zone for me. I will be walking 2 miles, then running 1 mile, then walking another 2 miles. That's a total of 5 miles...but I have to get ready for my half marathon which is only 50 days away people!!! Yep I said it!! 50 days away!!!

On the lighter note, I will be working harder since I got the watch because it also has a heart rate monitor on it. Not expected but I'm super excited on what I can do! Bring it on!

Getting Excited...

I have to say that since December is almost over...I'm getting really excited knowing that the race is only 2 months away from Monday! It's hard to believe it will be here before you know it and yes I still need to book my resort and room and all that and I will do that but I am so slack lately on it. I need to crack down on it. We have been trying to figure out if we wanted to fly down and where to stay and all that so we may have figured it out. Jason said he would look more at it when he comes home next week and he has a little more time to really look at it and the prices since he will be the one paying for it all. I have been looking for a used treadmill that I can set up in the garage to run since I have been wanting one. Whenever we move we will take it with us but it will be nice for me to use on the super cold days and I can play my music via my speakers and all that out in the garage. If we had enough room in the bedroom, the treadmill would be coming upstairs in the room with us but right now we don't have enough room.

Speaking of treadmills...I will be posting a different post just asking some advise on one. Since I am looking at a used one instead of a new one I will be asking very specific questions. But until then, I will leave you with a picture of me showing my progress of what I looked like last year compared to just this past week. I feel great too which is very nice to feel after feeling like crud all last year! The picture above is from tonight from when I arm knitted this beautiful infinity scarf for myself. It's not perfect but that is ok with me!

School is on Break! Finally!

Finally we have a break for School. I feel like a free woman! I can focus on spending time with my family and my training. I am now allowed to go running and I went for a walk yesterday but not long and forgot to charge my phone to record it. This is why I would love to have a Garmin Forerunner Watch to keep track of my runs/walks. I have been good in losing the weight still and have been able to continue to watch what I eat.

More than getting ready for the Princess Half Marathon, I am thinking of signing up for a local 5k race in February and I need to sign up before it's too late. It's the sweetheart 5k and this would be a fun race to run with friends here locally just before the big race.

Dinner

Dinner last night was such an easy dinner to make and boy was it good! Even Olivia ate it which for her to eat all of her chicken and then ask for seconds is amazing. She did try some of the zuchinni boats but wasn't too thrilled with them. So it was a no go for her there. But the fact that she tried it was amazing. She did however eat all the cheese out of the boat.

For the preparation of the chicken, it was frozen so I let it thaw completely out and then drizzled Olive Oil on top, then added some Emeril's Seasoning, Salt and Pepper on top and put in the fridge to marinate the rest of the day. I cooked it in the oven at 350 degree for around 45 minutes or so until the chicken was done. That's it.

The zuchinni boats were easy to do as well. All you have to do is slice the zuchinni in half the long way, hallow the insides out drizzle with olive oil, add some seasonings. I added just salt, pepper and garlic, place on cookie sheet and place in oven with chicken to allow to roast some. Then when you feel that they are ready to be stuffed you can stuff with anything..but I chose last night to stuff ours with grape tomatoes and mushrooms and cover with mozerella cheese and broil. That's it. They came out looking so good and the taste was out of this world!

The rest of the zuchinni that I hallowed out I just sauteed up with some olive oil and garlic. That's it. Simple. Such an easy dinner to make and extra healthy if you think about it. Definitely a keeper in our house!!!

Weight Loss Mini Goal Met..

This past week I have been unable to eat or even workout or run due to an abscessed tooth and oral surgery but I have to say that I have been able to meet one of my weight loss mini goals. A week ago I had issues with my tooth and honestly I thought that I could make it until Monday but holy smoke my tooth was killing me. So after a trip to the doctor, I found out my tooth was abscessed. I haven't been able to eat what I normally eat due to my mouth hurting but that I think has been a good thing because it meant no eating out or anything else. In the past week I have lost a good 10 pounds and I'm still loosing. I had to have oral surgery on Monday to have the tooth removed and have a drain put in but it's been a week. I still have stitches in my mouth so it makes eating a little difficult. I am still swollen some but it's not going to stop me from training for my half marathon.

I will be able to start working out on Monday and I can't wait! I am still trying to decide if I want to join a gym or if I want to just go purchase a treadmill for the house. If you have a treadmill what do you recommend? I want something that will last me several years but isn't super expensive either. I'm also looking at getting a Garmin Forerunner Watch and looking at a few and not sure which one to get. What is one that you would recommend? Have a good Saturday!

My mini goal was to be under 250lbs and that has been met! Next mini goal is to get to 230lbs. :) Halfway there!

SPIbelt Review & Giveaway

Have I told you all how much I'm actually enjoying running? Well even though I still get leg cramps and stuff, I'm getting used to going outside and running or trying to look like I'm halfway doing it. I'm not as coordinated as others but that's alright because I have my own way of doing things.

Well I was lucky enough to be able to review the SPIbelt recently and was sent their Original SPIbelt in Hot Pink of course! How can it be any other color? I have taken this belt out with me on several runs in the neighborhood and honestly I can tell you it's amazing to have. I have been placing my iPhone 6, my inhaler, and a GU Packet in there and wow! It fits and still has room for more stuff! It's amazing too because it stays put which I love because when I run I don't like it when things bounce or rub at all. It just bugs me like you have no idea. My mom is even looking at using this belt for when she mows the lawn in the spring and summer because it will hold her iPod and won't get in the way either which is a nice feature especially when we have almost 3 acres of grass to mow on a zero turn mower.

SPIbelt is short for Small Personal Items Belt and it's amazing to have on your. Not only will it fit your small things in there it will fit my husbands iPhone 6 Plus in there too...but then it just looks all bulky after that. So not recommended on that part but the good news is that SPIbelt has other belts that may fit your needs. Whether you go bike riding, hiking, kayaking, running and more they have everything for everyone's needs. That's what I love about their products. Plus I love the fact that I can stuff my belt full of crap if I wanted to and not have to worry about a thing. I of course don't because I normally don't run far from home and if I do then it's back and forth from one neighborhood to the other. Pretty nice if you ask me. The SPIbelt is adjustable which is amazing because most belts are not so adjustable. They are also stretchy too which I like...but for me I'm losing my belly and weight so I won't be needing it long to be stretched or pulled out long. Another great reason for trying the SPIbelt out is the price. For just under $20 you can get a great belt for you to take on a run. And they have so many other color choices! Now here is the awesome kicker...SPIbelt is offering to 1 lucky reader their very own SPIbelt as well. Please see the form below to enter.

Entry-Form

New Shoes...again!

Yes..I may have done it again! I went out and got new running shoes again! I went with a pair that I was originally fitted for back in June and I have to say that it's a huge improvement over the Asics that I have now. I purchased the Brooks Ghost 7 Running shoes and let me just say my feet feel like they are in heaven right now! They don't hurt and they feel like they are completely cushioned in the back which is amazing! I have never had a pair of shoes that have felt this good right out of the box. It's absolutely wonderful to have shoes that feel this good and I even went for a run yesterday and even though I didn't feel good it felt good to run in.

I will make some adjustments to the shoes just to make them more comfortable for my runs but lets just say they are perfect for my runs and will be perfect for my training for the half marathon in February. I am hoping to not take Olivia to Disney World in February and hoping that it will be a birthday trip for me to enjoy with just me and Jason. :) Plus running the half is even better! Running on the 22nd is going to be a good thing too because the 21st is going to be the 4 year anniversary of my granddad's death so this will be for him too! One week from his birthday to be exact so no need to worry at all.  Pop-Pop will be with me during my run.

Tomorrow I will go on my run and I will push harder than ever this go round. I may have not felt very good yesterday but I need to push harder than ever since I don't have that many more days for training. May have to go sign up for a gym membership after all instead of waiting to get a treadmill for Christmas.